


Deer in the Headlights

by GBHoltzFan



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Eventual Happy Ending, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Jealousy, Light Smut, Sis is a hussy, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-26
Updated: 2017-08-20
Packaged: 2018-12-07 03:17:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 6,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11614755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GBHoltzFan/pseuds/GBHoltzFan
Summary: Erin's sister is visiting New York for a few days and causes havoc. Erin deals with her crush on Holtzmann. Sweetness follows :-)





	1. Nic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin's younger sister keeps asking about Holtz.

Looking at my phone wallpaper, my sister asked "Who is she?"

"She's our quirky Ghostbuster engineer, Dr. Jillian Holtzmann. Where do you want to go for dinner." I answered, hoping to distract her. I really didn't want to discuss my crush on Holtz.

"She's hot!"

"Really? I guess so. We could go to Feast on 3rd Ave. I'll reserve a table." I offered, reaching out for my cell phone.

"Ok, we're good for 7 tonight at Feast. It's a casual place. What are you wearing?"

"Look at that neck. I'd love to drag my tongue from here to there, and nip right here." Nic had grabbed my phone back and was pointing to Holtz. "She's gay?"

"Yes. Come on Nic, I can't talk about my co-worker like that. Fuck!" 

"Is she nice?"

"Yes, Nic, she is." Nice doesn't cover it, I thought to myself.

My little sister had picked up on my uneasiness. I bit my lip. 

"What is it? You two don't get along? She's about to blow a rasberry on your cheek and you're all laughing..."

"Holtz is ... I don't know." I was struggling for an answer. 

Nic knew she had hit a soft spot. She'd keep pushing that button until she had answers. "Holtz is what?" 

"Holtz is a genius. I've never worked with someone like her before. She conceptualize my theories, takes them further. It's stimulating."

"Stimulating, I bet!"

"Nic! Enough! We have a reservation for 7. What are you wearing?" I got up and started towards the bedrooms hoping to end the interrogation. 

"Come back here. We have lots of time. You haven't said anything about the big guy who works with you. Weren't you hoping..."

"It didn't pan out."

"And Phil?"

"That's been over for months."

"Are you dating anyone?"

"Why all these questions, Nic? Did Mother ask you?"

"No, I'm just wondering." She's staring at my cell phone, at the picture. "It looks like one these tender playful moments shared by lovers..." 

Softly, I said "You're right, Holtz is tender and playful and fierce. She shines so brighty sometimes I'm afraid she's gonna go supernovae. We've got to get ready. Come on."

Nic put my phone down and finally dropped the subject. Her questions had stirred up stuff I didn't want to think about. Every time Holtz flirted with me, I was like a deer caught in the headlights: I frooze, afraid I'd let on how much I wanted to taste her lips, run my hands on her bare waist, hold her tight against me, love her and be loved by her for the rest of my life. No one could know.


	2. Not Axe Murderers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin and Nic go for dinner, meet new friends, change plans.

"Since we're getting free drinks out of the wait, may as well enjoy ourselves." 

The table won't be ready for awhile so while Nic is oggling and making eyes to some pretty people, I'm thinking how that's just like Nic, carefree, easy come, easy go, nothing phase her. Pretty soon, she's the life of a little group. 

When our table is finally ready, it turns out we're sitting next to her new female friends. I must admit they're entertaining. All three are from Maine, in town for a nursing conference and they're ready to party. They're probably not axe-murderers.

"I'm talking to you. Earth to Erin?" I smiled. "The girls are going to a club after dinner and inviting us along. Why don't we?" 

I'd been looking forward to see Girls Trip. I don't really feel like going clubbing with a group of 30 something but it's her last night in New York, so why not. Baby sister wants to dance, we'll dance. 

I feel old tonight. The 12-year difference between us feel more like a half a century. Mingling is so easy for her. It's gonna be a long night.

"We're sold out of mussels, would you care for the scallop dinner instead?"

"Sure" First the table isn't ready, then it's clubbing instead of a movie, I'm stuck feeling like an outsider to a group of hormone-driven women instead of having a quiet dinner with my sister and now scallops instead of mussels. At this point, I wondered what else would go wrong. Food poisoning comes to mind...

It turns out the food was good. As I'm paying the bill, Nic tells me "Ever heard of Henrietta's on Hudson St? That's where they wanna go, good dancing music. All five of us can pile into a Uber and go. It will be fun." 

Before I have a chance to reply, Nic gives the go ahead to the girls. We drive to the club. It's still early so we don't have to wait to get in. Surprise, surprise, it's a lesbian bar. Shit! Nic's never been shy about being bisexual. She's even told Mother about it and Mother laughed. 

The girls are giggling like kids. We're fresh meat: we haven't ordered our drinks yet, that we're being hit on. At least, Nic and her friends are...

And then I feel a hand on my back and hear "Hey, Hot Stuff, come here often?"

Oh fuck! I know the voice.


	3. Hook and Reel-in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holtz meets Nic.

Holtzmann!

With Holtz now standing next to me, leaning on me, with her hand pulling me closer by the waist, I'm like a kid caught with her hand in a cookie jar.

"Oh, Hi! No, my sister..." On hearing that, Holtz winks at me. 

"Which one?" I point to Nic, who is now walking towards us. Holtz is not moving, her hand casually on my hip. Then she streches out her free hand with flourish and introduces herself.

"Holtz, at your service. You must be Nic, charmed to meet you, finally!" 

Nic smiles, reaches for the outstreched hand and takes in the sight. Holtz is dressed in her usual paisleys, and stripes. She's sporting a pride scarf loosely tied around her neck, necktie fashion. She's glowing! I move a bit away from Holtz, and she drops her hand. 

"Holtz! Yeah! You're the genius Erin keeps talking about."

Holtz breaks into one of her million dollar smile. I can't hear what Nic is saying, the music is too loud. I see the girls on the edge of the dance floor motioning us to come over. I follow Nic and Holtz to the dance floor.

After introducing Holtz to the others, actually, she's pointing to me and Holtz, we start dancing. It's so crowded we end up pairing. Nic and Holtz are wildly girating, while I'm doing my go-to steps with Debbie, the other two have found other partners. Interesting...

My kid sister is almost humping Holtz. Shit! Holtz catches my eye, with a "What am I gonna do?" look. I shrug and smile. I start towards the bar with Debbie in tow. 

As we step off the dance floor, the music changes to a slow dance. I glance over in time to see Nic pulling Holtz to her and Holtz resting her arms around Nic's shoulders. 

Fuck! She's going for Holtz. I should have known better!


	4. Nothing Happened

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin leaves when she sees Nic and Holtz kissing.

I order a shot of vodka and promptly down it. Debbie is saying something: I couldn't care less. From where I'm standing, I can see Nic and Holtz dance.

"Another one, please." It burns going down my throat. She's got her hands all over Holtz' ass, squeezing and grinding against her. I can see she's got her mouth on Holtz' neck, licking and nipping, no doubt. 

Holtz' chin in on Nic's shoulder. Her eyes are closed, her hands on Nic's back, immobile. I look away. Debbie's mouth is still going. I smile, lips tight. This was supposed to be a fun evening. 

I look again. Dancers are partly obstructing my view, but what I see is enough to make the damn scallops flip in my stomach. Nic and Holtz are sucking face on the dance floor.

That's it. Fuck Debbie! As soon as the song ends, I march up to them, forcing a smile, fighting tears.

"Guys, I'm going home. I'm tired. Are you ok to get home by yourself Nic or..." I don't dare look at Holtz. 

Holtz mumbles "I should go too. It's been a rough week." Nic grabs Holtz' arm, all sweetly assures me she'll be fine. I throw a last smile for good measure, still not looking at Holtz. 

I get the fuck out of there as fast as I can. I hail a cab, get home, change into my nightgown. As I stand there, in front of the bathroom mirror, I start pounding the vanity counter with my fists. 

"Jesus fucking Christ! Why the fuck did she have to hit on Holtz? Does she hate me so much? Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Angry tears are free flowing. 

I manage to get my emotions under control and wash my face. I want to pretend that none of this happened tonight. 

I pour myself a generous glass of wine, turn on the tv. I catch the tail-end of a CSI rerun, then tune-in to Netflix and catch up on Scandal and House of Cards. 

The door buzzer wakes me up. I must have dozed off. It's close to 2:30 am. It's Nic. 

She walks in, furious, glaring at me. 

"Fine friend you have there, sis"

"What? Are you drunk?"

"No, we left shortly after you. I went up to Holtz' place."

Oh fuck! I don't want to hear this. She stomps to her room. I follow her. I'm trying to guess what could have happened. Holtz is no rapist, I'd be ready to bet my life on that. She may not be totally vanilla, but she's never given any hint of being anything but considerate with her partners. Nic grabs her pjs and storms into the bathroom. I hear the shower. I sit on her bed, waiting.

It's been a fucked up day from the minute she grabbed my phone and asked me about Holtz. Sis is a spoiled brat, always has been. She's sweet and cute and always gets her way. What the hell happened?

Nic finally comes out of the bathroom. She calmed down a bit. 

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Talk about it? Talk about what? Nothing happened. Not. a. fucking. thing!"

I wait. She's still glaring at me, as if it was my fault.

"We get to her place. What a mess, by the way. One minute we're kissing and pawing at each other. The next minute, she's calling a cab and throwing me out. 'I can't do this' she says. Fucking weirdo!"

"I don't know what to say, Nic. Let's talk about it in the morning."

I go turn off the TV and the lights, set the alarm on my cell and slip in bed. I'm just reeling. My phone vibrates. 

HoltzKaboom: Is Nic back

DrParticle: Yes. Very angry. What happened?

HoltzKaboom: ...

HoltzKaboom: Couldn't do this to you. G'nite.


	5. The Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin and Nic have coffee and words...

I was awake before the alarm went off. It was a short night... 

Nic is sitting at the table. I silently fill our coffee mugs. 

"I'm sorry about last night. I think I figured out what happened. Why didn't you tell me you and Holtz have something going?"

"Drop it, Nic."

"No. I made a fucking fool of myself."

I look at the steam rising from my coffee, I pick a piece of lint off the table. "There's nothing happening between us. We work together."

"Erin, she didn't turned me down because you're co-workers..."

I'm not about to tell her Holtz texted me last night. I don't even know what her text meant. "She probably didn't want anything weird between us, that's all, nothing to do with you."

"Weird?" Nic hisses. "One minute her mouth is attached to my neck," she points to a very obvious hickey, "her hand is on my tit and she's grinding on my leg, and the next minute I'm out. So you fucking tell me about 'weird'!" 

"Calm down, Nic. You might say there's feelings between us. It's been there since day one, like a big elephant in the room. But we've never discussed it." Now, I've said it.

Nic practically screams at me "Why the hell didn't you tell me?" 

Jesus! Can't she leave it alone? Fuck! Enough! "You picked up on it yesterday, Nic, so don't play the offended party now. Why the fuck did you have to move on Holtz? Why didn't you latch on to one of the nurses instead? You wanted to show me how good you are? How it's done?" 

We glared at each other for a few minutes.

"I've got to pack up and go. My flight is at 11 and I have to be there at least 1 hour before and if there's traffic..."

As she rushes to pack-up, I'm thinking Mother is going to skin me alive for this. What a fucking mess. 

"Will you call me a cab?"

"Yes, sure. Listen, I'm sorry I went off on you."

"It's ok. I'm sorry too. I'll call you when I get home."

As I close the door, I realize that I'll have to deal with Holtz tomorrow. And so I start rehearsing what I'm gonna tell her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments ? Suggestions ? Please be gentle :-)


	6. Yes, YES !

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin and Holtz clear the air. Erin agrees to date Holtz.

I went to work Monday, as usual.

"Have you heard from Holtz?" I asked Abby, half-hoping she's off dumpster diving for parts.

"No, nothing yet. It's Monday, she'll be here, eventually. Nic gone?"

"Yes, she flew out yesterday."

"Sorry I didn't get to see her. She had a good time?"

"Yeah, I think so." 

I look over my shoulder and see Holtz, standing there, looking at the wall behind me. 

"Hey..." 

"Hey..." 

An ackward silence follows.

"Wow, what's with you two?" asks Abby, "No, I don't want to know. I'm going to see Patty."

Whatever I'd rehearsed just evaporated. 

"Holtz..."

"Your sister is gone?"

"Yeah..."

"I'm sorry I screwed up."

"No, you didn't..."

"Came close tho... I wanted to." she mumbles.

"Holtz!" I almost bark, catching myself just in time. She's starting to leave.

"No, Holtz, don't go, I'm not angry at you."

She stops and turns back towards me. She's kicking her right toe boot into her left heel. I can tell she feels bad.

"Holtz, Nic toys with people and you and I haven't really spoken about, you know, ummm, us. I should have said something instead of shrugging and walking away. I didn't know what to say. I didn't feel like I had the right to say anything."

Still not looking at me, she flatly replies "So you left it to me." It's a statement of fact, plain and simple. There's no anger in her voice, just pain and regrets.

Neither one knows what to say. I move to hug her. Her body is stiff, her arms dangling. I squeeze a little, her head drops on my shoulder, her arms move up to encircle my waist. I lean my head against hers. I can't let go. Neither does she. The stress of the last 36 hours washes away. 

We hear Patty warning us she'll be coming for coffee in 2 minutes. We step back from each other.

"Are we good about Saturday night?" Her voice is unsure.

"Yes, Holtz. But we still have to speak about the other stuff, the 'thing' we don't talk about?"

Holts grunts "What's there to talk about? We like each other, right?"

I nod yes.

"Ok, let's date, see where it goes."

Her baby blues are locked onto mine. There's equal part of fierceness, tenderness and fear in her eyes. 

I nod yes.

"Erin, I want to hear you say 'Yes'" She's challenging me.

My voice is a little shaky but I manage a "Yes". 

Holtz starts smiling. "Erin, is that a YES you want to date me?" Her eyes are playful now. 

"YES, it is a YES! YES, I want to date you."

Holtz pumps her fist in the air, grabs me by the waist and swings me around just as Patty walks in.

"What are you crazy white bitches doing?"

"We're dating! It's true this time!" blurts out Holtz.

She stops swinging me around, bends me backwards and smootches me noisily. 

"Abby, you owe me 20 bucks" yells Patty.

Holtz runs the back of her fingers gently along my jaw, "Seven o'clock, dinner. I'll pick you up. Is that ok with you?"

"I'll be ready." There's another ackward moment while I'm trying to process what I've just agreed to. I settle on nodding and smiling and smiling!

Holtz jumps, clicks her heels and off she goes, leaving me to deal with Abby and Patty.

Abby hands Patty a bill and asks. "Well?" 

"Well, what?" I respond, as innocently as possible.

"Are you two dating now?"

No one will let me off the hook, after the debacle in front of Dr. Gorin. "Yes, we are dating." 

Between a groan and a laugh, Abby warns me to take care of Holtz. I know what she means. "I will, Abby, I will."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like Holtz as a no-nonsense, say it as it is person. I'm so looking forward to the return of SNL in September !


	7. Lovey-Dovey Vibes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A gay version of fairy tales.

Work-wise, the morning was uneventful. We didn't get a single call, which is strange, Mondays being usually our busiest day. I could feel Holtz' eyes on me and judging by the way she was grinning and running her the tip of her tongue on her bottom lip, her mind wasn't at all on version 3 of the ghost trap. 

Mother did call just before lunch, fishing for information. Nic had arrived home in a sulky mood, which she had explained by a rude flight attendant. Mother didn't buy it. She wanted details about her trip. So far, Nic had not told her about Holtz. So far...

My mind kept going back to the "We're dating". How was I going to introduce Holtz to Mother? Was I ready to come out, come out with Holtz? What if this was the biggest mistake in my life?

All four of us ate lunch together. If Holtz had been sitting any closer to me, she'd have been sitting on me. We glanced at each other, smiling. At one point, Holtz put her hand on mine and whispered in my ear "Relax, Er, it's going to be ok." I squeezed her hand, gratefully. 

Patty elbowed Abby saying it was time for their noon walk around the block. Abby started protesting.

"Since when?"

"Since today, now. A 15-minute walk won't kill you, Abby. And besides, there's too many lovey-dovey vibes coming off these two, I need some fresh air." 

After they left, we made small talk until Holtz asked me "I want to hug you, is that ok?"

Holtz freely gave hugs, never bothering to ask whenever she invaded personal space. This was a new one. "Of course, it's ok."

She pushed back our chairs, and invited me to sit down on her, to straddle her. It was bizarre for a sec, until she hugged me. I snuggled against her. I could feel her chest moving with each respiration. I could feel us relaxing, melting in each other's arms. It was so intimate. Worries about Mother, about dating, melted away. Relaxing, soothing. I stopped thinking. We stayed like that, for what must have been 10 minutes. 

In the distance, I heard the heavy firehouse door close, bringing us back to reality. Holtz brushed my cheek with her lips and softly said "Thank you".

I glided back to my desk, marveling at the inner peace I was feeling. This timeout with Holtz was unlike any experience I'd ever had, the connection was incredible. I had been weaned on fairy tale stories, princes and white picket fence. Today, I got a taste of the gayer version, in the arms of a certain blonde, wildly unpredictable female nuclear engineer...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep on reading ... it will get better, and hotter ...


	8. Wine, Food and Music

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin and Holtz have a really good time on their first date.

At exactly 7, the buzzer sounded.

"Hey, beautiful, your carriage awaits!"

Holtz cleans up good: skinny black pants, a loose button-up white shirt topped with a striped vest. I'm wearing a short cream colour summer dress.

"Should I bring a sweater?" I ask, before closing the door.

"I'll keep you warm, babe." winks Holtz before assuring me the evening's temperature is not expected to drop below 74F. 

She holds the door for me, and bows with a matching arm gesture as she opens the Uber door.

"Where are you taking me?" 

"How about a picnic and jazz concert in Astoria Park?" She points at a picnic basket I hadn't noticed. "The band plays 40's swing hits. You jive?" she asks, swinging her shoulders and pelvis. 

"Holtz, that's a wonderful plan. I love it!"

She beams at my response. She drapes her arm over the car seat and softly runs the tip of her fingers on the top of my arm. I move a little closer to her. I can smell her subtle perfume, probably a mixture of essential oils, which reminds me of pumpkin pie. I let out a little snicker.

"Pray tell" her eyes are asking.

"Oh, nothing, I was just wondering if you taste like pumpkin pie." I curse myself for uttering these words.

Holtz mouth hangs open for at least 5 seconds. I don't think I've ever seen her blush this hard. I'm worried blood is going to spurt from the tip of her ears. Her eyes get big and bigger. She swallows a couple of times. I can see she's exercising great restrain before answering back. "You'll just have to find out, won't you." she deadpans with a wicked smile.

We're both grinning, content to spend the remaining drive in a comfortable silence.

Upon arrival at the park, Holtz, basket in one hand, grabs my hand and quickly moves towards a spot which she claims is the best ever for a picnic. She pulls a red and white checkered tablecloth, and helps me down. After spreading the food, she uncorks the wine, fill our glasses and proposes a toast. "To you, my beautiful Erin, and to our first date." We cling our glasses and sip. (Correction: I sip, Holtz gulps) The wine, still cold, is a refreshing rosé, which complements nicely the Mediterranean loaded veggie sandwiches.

We talk, listen to the music. The band is really good. We dance some. Holtz stretches out, her head on my lap, feeds me grapes. We laugh. It feels so easy, so natural. 

At the end of the evening, Holtz insists on walking me to my apartment door, while the Uber waits. We exchange warm thank yous for a wonderful time. I turn towards my door, she starts toward the car. I call her back and kiss her, a quick peck on the lips. Her lips are so damn soft. She gives me the warmest look...

"Good night, Erin." she whispers. 

"See you tomorrow, Holtz." 

She watches me unlock the door before making her way to the car. 

I dropped down on the sofa. 'What a day!' From hurt to confusion to peace to a lovely evening, with Holtz, wine, food, and music.

It dawns on me this wasn't just any date. Is it my imagination or is Holtz is courting me?


	9. Frumpy Shirt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abby and Patty are curious about Holtzbert' first date. Erin tucks in Holtz' shirt...

I was asleep in no time last night. I woke up at my usual time, 7 am, rested, and looking forward to the day. As I'm drinking a coffee, my mind wanders back to yesterday, to our time out, to Holtz feeding me grapes, how she solved months of anguish with a simple solution: we like each other, let's date and see where it goes.

I was so afraid of sticking out by holding her hand in public. Nobody gave us a second look. I felt joy being with her. I still feel joy in my heart, more than I can ever remember feeling, with anyone. I know she wasn't putting on an act of liking me. She's so damn soft in private. She's so attractive. She's so lovable...

I make my way to the firehouse. Holtz is already there, regaling Patty and Abby of details about last night. I grab a coffee and stand next to her. She wraps her arm around my waist. I smile. She goes on describing the older couple who was dancing to a Glen Miller tune. She's talking about our date but without releasing information that belongs to us. Umm... 

Until now, Holtz always blurted out whatever came to her mind, or so I thought. How wrong I was. She's not shy about proclaiming our evening as being "the bestest date, ever, ever", which makes us all grin at her expression and enthusiasm, yet she filters the details as to keep the connection we shared, what we confided to each other, the feelings towards each other, private. That's one very skillful storyteller. 

Turning to me, Patty asks "Settle this for us, is Holtzy as good kisser as she pretends she is?" 

I blush. Holtz comes to my rescue, "We don't kiss and tell, do we Erin?" 

"She a gentlewoman." I add mysteriously.

"Come on, let's go Patty, we're not going to get any juicy details from Erin."

As we all get started to our respective workspace, I notice Holtz' frumpy shirt is buttoned-up all wrong. Automatically, I reach and unbutton the first button, line it up, button it, move down to the next one. I stop myself as I'm reaching the button over her chest. I lift my eyes: she's slack-jaw, beet red, again. What the hell! May as well continue. And so I do, unbutton, button the chest buttons, lightly brushing her breasts as I go by, and continue downwards. Holtz lets out a soft groan. I pull the front of her shirt out of her pants to finish the job. Then, (the devil made me do it, I swear to it) I tuck her shirt in, slowly running the flat of my hand on her stomach and under her pants' waistband. Holtz's belly muscles contract. "There, all done." I declare, as I remove my hand and walk away, leaving Holtz wide-eyed, Patty and Abby shocked. 

I hurry up the stairs, I hear Holtz running after me ... I smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm starting to think that Erin is quite a tease ...


	10. You've Been Holtzmanned, Baby!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erin and Holtz kiss. There's an explosion in the lab. Holtz is hurt.

Holtz catches up with me by the lab door. She steps in front of me and advances until I am sandwiched between her and the wall. 

Her eyes are shinning with excitement.

"That's twice you made me blush. You have more game than I do. Perhaps you are trying to find out if what Patty said is true."

I didn't think it would be appreciated to point out that I could ask Nic...

Her tone is playful, her whole body language is playful, yet she is still giving me a chance to back out. How could I with those moist pink lips calling me? We kiss. It is a little messy at first. Soon we find our rhythm, tongues, lips, bodies undulating, moaning with each bolt of pleasure cursing through our bodies.

We stop kissing, I rest my head on hers, eyes closed, waiting for my breathing and heartbeat to go back to normal. Then Holtz plasters her body against mine, her head on my shoulder, letting out what feels like purrs. 

Taking a nip at her neck, I ask "Are you going to sleep on me?"

All I hear is "... pumpkin pie?" before she peels herself off me, caresses my face with a hand, looks straight into my eyes, and says "You've been Holtzmanned, Baby!" The usual maniacal grin associated with the declaration isn't there. Instead is this sweet, soft, contended smile, melting my heart. 

"Yes I have." I agree, with a matching soft smile. "Would you care to continue this... ummm.... discussion over dinner at my place tonight? Dinner is at 6."

"Dinner, at 6, yes!" and she breaks into a dance.

A call comes in. Abby and Patty take care of the little fellow while I continue working on the month end's reports for the mayor. Holtz works on whatever projects she's working on, dancing and singing. 

I am thinking ahead to Thanksgiving. Mother expects me to be there. Actually, she demands I be there. I'm not going unless Holtz is welcomed as my girlfriend. I gasp at the leap I just made. Three months from now, would we be together, would Holtz want to come? Deep down, I want it to be so. This relationship is only one day old, yet I feel so loved, and safe and secure with Holtz.

POOF! I freeze. This was not a little poof. 

"Holtz? Holtz?, are you alright?" Abby and Patty are climbing the stairs, two at the time asking the same question.

"Erin, dearest, would you come here please?"

I find her crumpled on the floor, a few feet from her still smoldering table. She coughs and smiles at me. 

"Would you take me to the ER, please?" She is holding her left arm, blood is trickling down the side of her face.

"Holtzy, how bad is it?" asked Patty, kneeling next to her.


	11. Touch and Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holtz is taken to the ER.

"Not so good, Patty" as she lets us look at her arm. A piece of metal is embedded deep on the inside her forearm. We gasp.

"I can move my fingers, but it hurts like hell!" 

"Don't move your arm or try to remove the metal from your arm" admonishes Abby.

Abby slips a slink to support her arm while Holtz is cursing the metallurgy industry: "There is no fucking way this should have happen unless the resistance of the steel was lowered by impurities or flaws. Fuck it hurts!"

I find the source of the bleeding on her face - it's a cut high on the side of her forehead. It doesn't look too deep. She's still wearing her goggles. I notice deep scratches on the frame. They must have deflected shrapnel and saved her from a much worse injury.

She tries to get up, cursing. The blood drains from her face. We manage to get her downstairs while Patty brings the car around to the nearest exit. While we drive to the hospital, I sit next to her, holding her uninjured hand. 

Abby hurries up and gets a wheelchair from the ER and wheels Holtz in.

"Doctor Holtzmann! We haven't seen you for a couple of weeks. What brings you here today?" The intake nurse cheerfully asks. Holtz grunts "my arm". Seeing the piece of metal, the nurse drops the cheerful act and wastes no time in calling a physician. 

Abby looks after the paperwork while Patty moves the car to the ER parking. I stay with Holtz. A nurse cleans the cut on her forehead and apply butterfly tape to close it. No stitches required. Meanwhile, the physician gently gropes around her arm wound, "Can you move your fingers just a bit for me?" Eyes shut tight, Holtz complies. "Any tingling or loss of feelings in your hand?" Holtzmann grunts "No". 

"Good news, Doctor Holtzmann. The bones aren't broken. Muscles do not seem to have been severed. But we'll need to take you to OR to remove this. Bleeding is my biggest concern. The nurses start cutting off her top and prepping her ready for the OR.

Holtz turns to me and manages to ask me if the invit for dinner is still on. "I'll wait for you here and yes, our date is still on." I give her a reassuring smile. She tries to smile back.

I watch as they take her away on the gurney, then rejoin Abby and Patty in the seating area. We hold hands, silently. "One of these days..." Patty doesn't need to finish the sentence aloud, we know what she means. Fear grips me at the thought. 

Less than 2 hours later, the nurse comes over to us with good news: "She's out of the recovery room. Everything went well. She's a bit groggy but she's asking for you."

We bounce out of our chairs and go to her room. She's hooked to an IV line, with two bags hanging from the pole, one being blood. She's pale. She looks so damn small in a hospital bed. 

"Oh man, that's good shit." she grins, referring to whatever drugs they gave her.

While Abby tries to get more details from the nurses, Patty and I sit by Holtz. I gently push away a strand of hair from her forehead. I want to hold her in my arms: she's safe, until the next time. 

"It was touch and go for awhile." reports Abby "She bleed a lot when they removed the shrapnel. The little shit was lucky. Other than a scar, no permanent damage. She'll be released as soon the transfusion is done."

"You calling me a "little shit", Abby?"

"Yes, Jillian." responds Abby, her voice betraying the profound affection she feels towards Holtz.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish I were as good storyteller as some writers on this site. In real life, I report findings, write boring policies and procedures, neutral, exempt of feelings. It shows... My apologies.


	12. No More Elephant in the Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being discharged from the hospital, Holtz goes to Erin's place for dinner. They tackle elephants...

Erin invited Holtz back to her place, after she was discharged from the hospital. After all, they did have a date planned for the evening. The drugs had worn off and Holtz was sore ... not that she would admit to it.

As soon as they got in the apartment, Erin pulled her girlfriend into a hug.

"Babe, you could have been killed! Each time I hear a boom, I'm scared."

Holtz' didn't respond with her usual bravado.

"I'm sorry Erin to put you through this. I build prototypes, through trial and error. It's the nature of my work. It's who I am, what I do. I get a kick out of pushing boundaries. One of these days, I do expect I'll end up like the guy from CERN or worse. I'm not trying to, but that's a probability."

Holtz cast her eyes down and bit her lip as she finished her explanation. She knew this wasn't what Erin wanted to hear but it was the truth. 

Erin lifted Holtz' chin and looked her in the eyes : "I'm a scientist too, Holtz, and I don't accept your conclusion. It doesn't have to be this way."

Holtz didn't want to argue.

"What's for dinner?" 

"This discussion is not over, Holtz."

"I know, Erin. Can we talk about it some other time, tomorrow?" She made a funny face and kissed Erin's cheek to defuse the situation. "I'm starving!"

Erin saw the wisdom in dropping the subject, for now. "Lasagna and salad. Why don't you settle in the living room and rest a bit while I get dinner ready?"

"You got a new fish? The one with black stripes. What is it?"

"It's an angelfish."

"Does it have a name?"

"Noooo? I don't name my fish."

"How about "Angie"? 

"Angie it is." Declared Erin, glad to agree with Holtz on something.

Her aquarium is her pride and joy. Whenever Erin is tired of the TV noise, she sits quietly, watching her fish. The pump produces a soothing sleep inducing white noise.

By the time, dinner was served, Erin found Holtz, asleep, on the sofa chair. She took a moment to lovingly look at the resting engineer.

"Dinner is ready" Erin said, delicately placing her hand on Holtz' shoulder.

"Oups ... I dozed off. Food !" She jumped off the chair, took Erin's hand, brought it to her lips, kissed it, and held it to her mouth long enough to run her tongue between Erin's index and middle finger. And she gave Erin a hungry look before sauntering to the table, leaving Erin to deal with unexpected warmness south of her waistband. 

"You look a little flush, are you ok?" asked Holtz, with a playful smile, as she dug into the lasagna. 

"You're a tease, Holtz." 

"And you love it, ErBear. What's the plan, tonight?" asked Holtz suggestively. 

"I thought we'd go see "Girls Trip", but it's getting late. How about Netflix..."

"and chill?" added Holtz.

"Netflix and chill? Sure... There's a couple TED you may want to watch."

"Erin dearest, do you know what Netflix and chill is?"

"Relaxing while watching Netflix?" tentatively offered Erin.

"Not quite..." replied Holtz, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh... I see" Erin didn't know what to answer to that. Holtz didn't push it. 

Finishing off her second helping, Holtz declared Erin's lasagna "a culinary masterpiece."

"How's your arm."

"Throbbing, nothing I can't handle." Again a suggestive smile, which Erin didn't know how to respond to. 

"Erin, does my flirting make you uncomfortable?" In the flick of a second, Holtz had turned serious. 

Erin smiled and took a moment to answer. 

"Uncomfortable? Until yesterday, I didn't know what it meant to you, to me. Now, I feel we're doing some kind of mating ritual, dancing around an unspoken question. I don't want to fuck you. I want to make love with you."

Holtz was in shock from the unexpected candid admission. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, unsure of how best respond. "I want to make love with you, Erin, now, if you'll have me."

Erin saw no need to answer with words. She guided Holtz to her bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you continue reading, I'll continue writing :-) Take care !


	13. I Need a Shower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holtz and Erin shower.

Holtz stopped Erin as they walked past the bathroom. 

"I should really shower before... you know..."

"What about your arm?" 

"Are you offering to help me?" Playful Holtz was back.

"It so happens I could use a shower as well. Let me get some plastic to wrap your arm and extra towels."

By the time Erin returned to the bathroom, Holtz had removed her outer clothes and was starting to remove the many pins, holding up her hairdo. Erin stood in the doorway, admiring the view. 

"Like what you see?" grinned Holtz in the mirror.

Erin didn't answer. She laid the towels and the saran wrap on the counter, walked to Holtz and, started running her fingers through Holtz hair, removing pins. Feeling Erin's body against her back, she placed her hands on the counter and let out a soft groan.

Concerned, Erin stopped pulling hairpins and asked "Did I hurt you?"

"Oh goddess, no, Erin, carry on." responded Holtz, prompting Erin to continue. As she was pulling the last pin, Holtz asked Erin "Do YOU need help with this?" motioning to Erin's clothes. Her tone was somewhere between shy, playful and lascivious. 

Erin hesitated but for a moment, old insecurities resurfacing. "Please do" she whispered, lifting her arms. Holtz hooked her thumbs into the bottom hem of the MIT sweatshirt and running her hands slowly up along Erin's sides and shoulders pulled the sweatshirt over Erin's head. 

Next were Erin's jeans. Holtz took her time unzipping, and running her hands against Erin's hips, to her cheeks and down her legs slowly pulled the jeans down, dropping to her knees to help Erin out of the garment. 

"Ummm, nice view from here. We don't shop at the same store, do we?" she said, jumping back up to her feet before adding, with a wink and a smile, "You want to wrap my arm now or after my bra is off or perhaps we're going to shower in our undies?"

In for a penny, in for a pound. The last statement emboldened Erin. Holtz gasped and groaned as she felt Erin's hands slip under her bra, flip the elastic fabric over the girls, and tug it off over her head, careful not to rub the injured arm. 

"Stunning view from here." quipped Erin, bringing Holtz back to earth. 

Holtz lifted her arms, rolled her shoulders, moved her head side to side, trusting her pelvis, singing "I'm too sexy", earning a laugh from Erin, who loosely put her hands on Holtz' hips, mimicking the movements. Still dancing, Holtz put her hands on Erin's shoulders, letting them wander down her back, stopping at the bra clasp. With a smile, Erin gave the go ahead and the next beat found them joyfully singing and dancing, topless, in the bathroom.

After this musical interlude, Erin wrapped Holtz arm and turned on the water. She stepped out of her underwear as she stepped into the shower, inviting Holtz to follow her. 

Holtz stood facing the shower stream, Erin behind, reminding her to keep her arm up, away from the water. Erin washed and rinsed her girlfriend's hair, and proceeded to wash her with a facecloth, in a non-sexual way, in fact letting Holtz do her own "private parts" wash and rinse. 

Once Holtz was done, they rotated, so Erin stood, her back to the shower stream, facing Holtz. One arm up, away from the water, she couldn't help much, but she could watch, and she did.

"Wanna do my back?" asked Erin, handing Holtz a soapy facecloth. 

"Erin dearest", responded Holtz, biting her bottom lip, "you will be the death of me." 

Stepping out of the shower, Erin towelled Holtz dry before wrapping her in a bath sheet. She then quickly wrapped herself in a bath sheet before carefully removing the plastic wrap from Holtz' arm. The bandage was dry. 

They looked into each others' eyes, smiled and resumed their course to the bedroom.


End file.
